Captain's First Date
by allthingsevans
Summary: Set six months post Avengers: AoU. Everyone is back to their normal routine in which Steve decided to go on his first dinner date ever.
_Hey! This is my first fanfiction and I've been wanting to post this for a very long time. This is set post Avengers: AoU and I realized that there are a few, almost none, that writes about Steve Rogers/Helen Cho. I think they would make a cute and unlikely pairing in the movie! *cross fingers* I just think that Steve needs to have someone that is normal, not from the Avengers or anyone working for SHIELD, and be like any other normal couple out there. That's when the idea came up._

 _Enjoy this one!  
_

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 **Captain's First Date**

It was yet another day at the Avengers head quarter and as usual, everyone is busy with their training. Wanda had gone off for lunch with Vision while Sam is busy polishing his wings back in the common room. For the past three months, there has been less contact in between Steve and Tony. The last time Steve recalled, Tony said he's in Miami with Pepper, vacationing like any other couple. That left Steve and Natasha at the head quarter, busy recruiting new Avengers team members and training them so that they are ready for the battle field. However, what makes Steve extremely bored today is because Natasha too, had gone off in thin air with Nick Fury an hour ago.

He sighed as he takes another sip of coffee and saw Helen Cho walking through the hallway not far from him. Steve didn't know why he felt nervous all of the sudden. Helen is just like any other of his co-workers except that this woman, somehow, brought butterflies to his stomach. Steve admires Helen very much. She's a very independent and strong woman. She's not much of a fighter, not like Natasha or Wanda, because she has a really feminine side to her. But, Helen's strong will and passion towards Science surprised him. No one is better than Helen Cho when it comes to genetics research.

Steve's eyes were fixed on Helen as she stopped walking, surrounded by four of her co-workers, and tried to take a look at all of their files. She is always so busy and he wondered whether she ever had time for herself. He knows how important the Cradle of Life to Helen but sometimes, he just wished that she would rest and not think about the cradle too much. When Helen started walking again and left the hallway, Steve finished the rest of his coffee and is ready to leave when suddenly he felt someone tapping his left shoulder. Steve turned around and smiled as he gives a kiss on Natasha's cheek.

"Where have you been, Romanoff?"

"Just have something to do with Fury a while ago. Enjoy having coffee on your own, huh?"

"Well, the last time I recall, everyone exclude me from lunch."

"Oh, come on. I see you checking Dr Helen Cho. Be a man and ask her out, Cap."

"What?"

Steve chuckled awkwardly as he sat back down on his seat when Natasha held out her hand to order for a coffee. He just shook his head in disbelief when the woman before him continues smirking for the next few minutes.

"Oh, of course I see the way you look at Helen. It's too obvious. Everyone knows."

"Know about what?"

"That you have your eyes on Helen Cho!"

"That's not possible, Romanoff."

"What's not possible? She's single and you're obviously and undeniably single too. You guys will make great babies together. Helen's beautiful."

"She is."

Steve took a quick glance at Helen's lab which was located at the level two of the building and smiled to himself. Natasha's right though. Helen is a beautiful and an undeniably smart woman. He's at loss if he didn't man up and ask Helen out for a date already. As far as what he heard from Tony few months ago, Helen had her eyes on Thor. But, that's not possible, because Thor is with Jane now and he's even thinking on proposing to the scientist in the near future. Tony is with Pepper, Clint is happily married and Natasha is waiting for Bruce. Much to his surprise, even Sam is dating someone right now and Wanda had a peculiar relationship with Vision. Everyone is with someone except him!

"Hey, are you too scared or too shy to ask her out?"

Steve chuckled. "Too busy." He replied.

"Oh, Steve. That is so last year!"

"What do you mean?"

"You told me the same thing too when I asked you about that nurse who was your neighbor and happened to be an undercover agent. What was her name again?"

"Agent Sharon Carter."

"Right."

"I don't know. I'm not sure whether Helen is up for someone like me, you know? I'm 97 year old, as a matter of fact." He tried to joke.

Natasha wasn't buying it. "Well, too bad, because Helen's been waiting. So, man up!" She said as she drinks the rest of her coffee and left the cafeteria.

Steve watched as Natasha stood up from her seat and quickly followed Maria who just walked out of an elevator and both of them head straight to the conference room. He turned back to look at Natasha's cup and sighed to himself. To be honest, he's been looking forward to ask Helen out for a cup of coffee and maybe for dinner too since after the battle ended. But, there is something inside him that is not ready to let Peggy go. Peggy is his first love. He had always loved her even when she can no longer recognize him every now and then when he visited her at the hospital. If he ever goes out with Helen, what will happen if he falls for her? Will he stop loving Peggy then?

That's when he decided to buy another two cups of coffee, lasagna and some croissants from the cafeteria. He made his way up in no time, not even using the elevator, and stood infront of Helen's lab. Steve chuckled in disbelief when he saw Helen busy walking around the lab on her own when everyone else was gone for lunch.

"Dr Helen Cho."

"Oh! Captain Rogers, you startled me!"

Helen laughed nervously as she turned back to look at him and smiled. She didn't expect Captain America would be paying her lab a visit today.

"What are you doing here, Captain Rogers? You're usually with Natasha and the rest of the Avengers team at the assembly hall." She asked again when Steve just stood in the middle of her lab, not speaking anything.

"Just call me Steve. Everyone else call me Steve."

"Well, I'm not part of the Avengers team, am I?"

"But, you're part of us. You helped creating the Cradle and that makes you part of us, Helen."

"Alright, Steve. So, tell me, is there anything that you want? Are you hurt somewhere that needs me to patch you up?"

Steve laughed and shook his head. He put down the coffee and lunch he bought for her and smiled. "I see you're still in the lab while everyone else is busy taking a break." He told her and had to act cool when she slowly made her way towards him.

"Is that for me?"

"There's no one else in this room."

"Oh, you don't have to do this."

"Not big of a deal."

"Thank you, Steve. I really appreciate it."

Steve didn't know what else to do when Helen just stood there, admiring all the food and at the same time, taking secret glances at him. Of course he saw it. Who is she trying to bluff? He wanted to stay but that might be awkward as hell for Helen though. So, he cleared his throat and is ready to leave when suddenly he heard Helen calling for him again.

"Have you had your lunch?"

"Only coffee."

"Care to join me? I hate eating alone."

Steve hates that it was always Helen who started the first move. It should be him asking her whether he could stay and accompany her while she finish off her lunch but he had to just walked away and wait for her to ask him. He was glad that Helen gave him a reassuring smile when he sat down on the chair next to her. She started serving the food for the two of them and quickly sat down next to Steve.

"I don't know what you like so I bought spaghetti and some croissants." Steve said, almost unconfidently.

"Spaghetti's good, thank you."

"You're welcome."

"So, what is up with you today? You usually don't come near my lab if the Avengers are not with you." Helen asked and chuckled awkwardly to herself when she realized how odd her question was.

"I guess that's a cue for me to come by often?"

"No, I don't mean that. Steve, oh, I'm sorry. Please don't misunderstand me."

"You're right. I don't come by that often compared to the other Avengers."

He chuckled, took one croissant and shoved it into his mouth as he looked at Helen. Helen sighed and she immediately thought of Bruce and Tony. Out of all the Avengers, she's the closest to the two scientists, especially to Bruce since they shared the same interest in Science. Ever since Bruce left to nowhere and Tony went vacationing with Pepper, Helen found herself surrounded by a sea of scientists with no interest to befriend her. She's not really that close to Wanda but Vision would always come by to have a small chat with her from time to time. Natasha and Maria are always busy all the time. Thor was back in Asgard.

Helen finished off her spaghetti and showed the empty container to Steve which earned her a small chuckle from the captain. She smiled and took the coffee next to Steve's. Oh, god. How can someone be so perfect like the one sitting before her right now? Matter of fact, Helen never had her eyes on Steve when she first met him. She was all for the God of Thunder. She does realize that Thor was happily dating Jane back then but she still has her crush on him. Helen guessed maybe it was the night when Steve saved her from the Ultron by tearing the evil robot apart.

"Helen, there is this Chinese restaurant just opened up around the corner and they served really good food. I've tried it once and it's delicious. Something called _jjamppong?_ "

Helen laughed. "That's right.. _jjamppong._ But, Steve, I'm not a Chinese."

"Yes, I know that. I know you're a Korean. What I was saying is.. umm.. would you like to.. would you like to taste that _jjamppong_ with me tonight after work?"

Steve thought his heart is going to jump out of his chest and explode right away when he received no response from Helen. He turned to look at her and gave her his most famous lopsided grin that he didn't usually give to others. He normally don't get nervous that much but there's something about Helen Cho that makes his palm go all sweaty and his heart beating twice faster than normal. It was the longest thirty seconds of his life when suddenly he felt warmth filling his whole body when Helen carved a smile on her beautiful plump red lips. She didn't even put any makeup on but he can tell that she's blushing. He guessed that's a real good sign.

"I'd love to. Meet me here at 8 o'clock." Helen replied.

"Understood."

"I better get back to work."

"Yeah, sure, I have something to do too. So, I'll see you tonight?"

"See you tonight, Steve."

* * *

Sam was texting with his girlfriend on the couch in the common room when suddenly Steve came barging in and ran straight to his room. Sam frowned and quickly stood up from his seat before running to Steve.

"Hey, Cap! What's the rush? Did something happened? I better go get my suit."

"No, no. Nothing happened."

"So, what's the rush?"

"Sam, do you have anything good to wear?"

"What?"

"I mean anything cool to wear for a dinner?"

Sam immediately let out a soft chuckle. He knows exactly what Steve is implying. Making his way back to the couch, Sam couldn't stop giggling to himself. He had never seen Steve behaving that way. Steve is always that cool and serious person when he's on and off the battle field. The only person that Steve's comfortable enough to be himself is when he's with either Thor or Sam himself. It's very unusual to see Steve running around asking for something good to wear when the captain usually had either his uniform or tight t-shirt and training pants almost all the time.

"So, who's your date?" Sam asked while still giggling to himself.

"Shut up."

"Seriously, who's your date, Steve? I want to know."

"Someone you're not really close to."

"Dr Helen Cho? Hey, I might not be that close to her but we talked a few times, alright. It's about time though. What took you so long?"

He heard Steve's footsteps coming back towards him and Steve eventually sat down on the couch right before his now best friend. Steve smirked and shook his head in disbelief.

"How did you know it was Helen? I didn't say anything about her."

"It's obvious that you have hots for her, Cap."

"I believe that I didn't say anything about Helen when I'm with you."

"Yeah, but that little sketch book thingy does."

"You didn't."

"Fortunately, I did. You left it on the table when you went to shower that one morning few months ago."

Sam laughed when Steve hid an embarrass smile while trying to pretend like he is rubbing his face with his palms. Of course, Sam knew. They've known each other for the past two years. They're extremely close when Sam was chosen to be part of the Avengers team. They work closely to each other and Sam would sometimes hang out in Steve's private room. It was at that one particular morning when Sam came into Steve's room and found the captain in the shower, he was just messing around the spacious room when he saw a tiny little sketchbook lying on a table. He opened it and saw many other random things like a drawing of dogs, tall buildings and was surprised to see a drawing of Helen Cho too.

"That's okay, Cap. It's about time for you to go out and have a real date. Helen's been waiting for way too long."

"I don't know. I'm not sure whether I should do this."

"Why not?"

"I feel like I'm neglecting Peggy if I were to go on a date."

"Man, listen. I know how you feel. I know Peggy's your first love. But, she'd be happy for you if she were to know that you're finally seeing someone. Peggy found the love of her life and she had beautiful children and even grandchildren. Trust me on this, Cap. Peggy would want the best for you too."

Steve gave a small smile at the corner of his lips before slowly nodding his head in agreement. "So, do you have anything good to wear?" He said as they both head back to Sam's closet to search for a good outfit for the Captain's first date.

* * *

Steve nervously waited in his room after he finished his training with Sam, Wanda and Vision. He kept looking at his watch, waiting for it to turn to 8 o'clock. It was precisely at two minutes to eight that Steve decided to get his butt off the chair and head straight to Helen's lab. As he passed by a mirror on his way to the lab, Steve took several quick glances at his own reflection. He didn't know whether he's making a good choice or not tonight. He's wearing an old navy blue shirt that he wore back during Tony's party at the Avengers tower, the night he first met Helen and a khaki leather jacket on top. Such an old fashioned guy, thought Steve to himself.

As soon as he enters Helen's lab, he was confused to find Helen not in the room. Steve scanned the whole lab in search for Helen when suddenly the young Korean woman walked out of her changing room with her handbag clinging on one arm while the other is trying to tie her hair up.

"You should let your hair free. It's more beautiful that way." Steve said all of the sudden and how he wished he didn't say that though he's being sincere with his comment.

"Oh, Steve! You're early."

"You said 8 o'clock."

"I did. I did and you're very punctual."

Steve smiled in satisfaction when Helen decided not to tie her hair up and quickly throws the hair band into her handbag. He took one quick look of her from head to toe. He didn't usually get the chance to see Helen wearing anything other than her lab uniform. She usually comes to work very early in the morning and left very late at night when she's done with her research. He's busy training the Avengers team most of the time and away for several missions that sometimes he needed to take a few weeks off the headquarter. It's impossible how Helen looked so beautiful even when she's just wearing a simple pair of denim jeans and floral top. And was that blusher on her cheek or her cheeks were always red like that?

"Should we go with my car?" Helen asked, half nervous.

"I hope you don't mind riding my Harley?"

"Are you serious?"

"Yeah, I borrowed a spare helmet from Sam. Do you mind?"

"No, not at all."

Steve and Helen walked alongside each other as they make their way to the parking lot. Steve glared when he saw Natasha smirking at him from her car as she was also about to make her way home. Natasha gave one last reassuring smile, as if telling Steve that she's proud of him and that everything's going to be fine, before driving off.

Steve nervously took Sam's helmet and was contemplating on whether to put it on for Helen or not. Maybe it was too much for a first date, he thought. Just when he had made up his mind to help Helen wear the helmet, the Korean geneticist took the other free helmet and quickly put it on her head. Steve chuckled softly as he realized that he just missed his chance on being a gentleman to Helen.

"Is there anything wrong?" Helen asked innocently.

"No, nothing. Let's go."

"Do me a favor, Steve?"

"Anything."

"Don't ride too fast."

Steve chuckled when he saw that worried look on Helen's face. He thought she was joking but she's actually being honest with her request. "We're not rushing to anywhere, Helen." He assured her and she immediately smiled.

As soon as Helen got on his Harley, Steve started the engine and they both went to the Chinese restaurant that he mentioned earlier that afternoon. It's nice to go out like normal people without being watched. Since it's a Chinese restaurant and most of the visitors are mostly Asians, Steve felt more comfortable. Not many people noticed that it was Captain America who was walking into the restaurant and sat at the empty table right at the corner of the Chinese restaurant. Steve smiled when he saw Helen looking around the restaurant and sighed to herself.

"Do you like it?" He asked her when one of the waiter came to give them the menu.

"It feels like home."

"I guess it's been a while since you last went back to your country."

"Give or take about six months. I don't mind anyway because my parents are probably going to rush me into marriage every time I go back."

Helen chuckled awkwardly. She didn't know it slipped out her tongue and it was none of Steve's concern. She didn't have to tell him about it but she did anyway. Trying to avoid the awkwardness, she scanned the menu and is ready to order her food when she turned back to look at Steve and he was still staring at it. A while later, Steve called the waiter again and placed his order for them both. He looked at Helen and smiled.

"I seriously don't know how to start the conversation."

Helen chuckled. "I know. This is awkward."

"No, it's not awkward. It's just that I realized I haven't been able to have a direct conversation with you. I'm the least favorable, I guess. Always the boring, dull guy from the 1920s."

"Steve, you're the best guy."

Steve found his heart skipping a beat when Helen earnestly complimented him. She gave him that sweet smile of hers while fixing her hair from the mess that the bike ride created a while ago. The waiter came back with their food and he neatly arranged all of them on the table before excusing himself to the kitchen. Steve and Helen started to dig into their dinner as they were both starving and Helen started talking about her new research when Steve asked about the Cradle. She then sighed when she realized that this is not the time for her to talk about work. This is the time for her and Steve to get to know each other.

"Enough about work. Tell me about yourself, Steve."

"Nothing interesting. You probably heard everything from the Smithsonian by now."

"Speaking of which, I haven't had the chance to visit the Smithsonian."

Steve chuckled in disbelief. Almost half of the people of the United States have visited the Smithsonian just to get a closer look about Captain America when it was first displayed and there you go, one Helen Cho, who has no slightest idea about the Captain America exhibitions in the Smithsonian. He turned back to look at Helen and smiled when he saw a stain of dumpling sauce at the corner of Helen's mouth. Out of consciousness, Steve reached out his hand to brush off the stain.

"In conclusion, I'm that guy from the 1920s who eventually got revived from death and is trying to figure out what to do with his life now that he lost everything."

"Uhh.. umm.."

"Oh, I'm sorry. There's a stain at the corner of your mouth. I was just wiping it off. I'm sorry if you think I'm being rude. Helen, I'm really sorry."

"That's okay, Steve. That's really sweet. Thank you."

Helen blushed as she wiped her mouth using a tissue to make sure that there's no more stain on her face. Or, should she just purposely do one in order for Steve to wipe it off for her again? Helen chuckled in disbelief and turned to the jukebox when one of the visitor played a classic Chinese song. Steve was smiling too.

"Do you like music?" He asked her.

"My dad and I are both fans of music. My family used to live here in New Jersey back when I was a child and I grew up listening to The Bee Gees. My dad is a huge fan of them. But, I'm more of the Jackson Five era."

"Yeah, I heard those. Sam told me about them."

"They're fantastic! But, of course, being the only daughter in the household requires me to learn classical music. My mom hates it when I followed my brothers around too much. She said they make me look like a boy."

Steve frowned and smiled at the same time. "You have a brother?" He asked as he pushed aside his empty plate of dumpling and is excited to know more about Helen's story.

"Two of those, actually. One is in the Navy and the other is in the Air Force. Both of them are married and are nearly reaching 40. I guess that's why my mom is always worried about me. I'm 34 and would always be the workaholic daughter."

"But, you're good in what you do."

"I really appreciate that, Steve. Thank you. Enough about me, let's talk about you. Tell me something I don't know."

"As far as I'm concern, there's nothing interesting about me that is worth knowing."

"Well, can I ask you something?"

"Anything, Helen."

"Do you want to continue being an Avenger? I mean, you always talked about wanting to have a normal life. Build a family like Clint and be happy with your wife and children."

Steve nodded. What Helen said to him was the truth. He does want all that. He's been thinking of quitting the Avengers too after knowing that Clint retired right after the battle in Sokovia ended in order to give space for his family. He respects Clint so much because that guy is willing to give it all up to make his wife happy. Steve always wanted to have that kind of life back when Peggy is with him. Now, he's not sure anymore. The battle field feels like home to him and he can't really tell whether he's going to be okay not surrounding himself with anything army-related.

"I guess that's why I'm still single."

"What do you mean?"

"No living person is willing to be with me, Helen. You know it better than anyone else. And, I guess I'm okay with that. I've lost people that I love so many times and I don't want that to happen anymore."

All of the sudden, there was a deafening silence between Steve and Helen. He knows that he just ruined their first date by talking rubbish. He looked at her and there was an awkward smile with a slight frown on her forehead. It was hard to read her because there was sad, disappointment and sympathy all mixed into one feeling that he couldn't describe. Steve wanted to say something, apologize if he could, but Helen just patted his hand and held her arm out to call for the waiter. Steve sighed and took out a few cash and paid the waiter before they left the restaurant.

"Helen?"

Steve called for Helen when she continued walking way ahead of him since they exited the Chinese restaurant. His words a while ago kept on repeating in his head. Did he just reject her way before knowing her feelings for him? Steve cursed to himself as he continued to follow Helen from behind and stopped when she suddenly went to the nearest ice cream stand right by the street and bought herself a vanilla ice cream with chocolate on top. Steve stood right next to Helen and peeked at her. He quickly took out two dollars from his purse and paid the ice cream seller. Helen just smiled and started walking again and they both ended up sitting on a bench right under a tree at the park.

It was cold and chilly. Steve was wondering why Helen decided to eat ice cream during such chilly weather like this. He took off his leather jacket and wrapped it around Helen's shoulders as he sat down on the bench right next to her.

"It's a bit too chilly for ice cream, don't you think?"

"It's the best time."

"That's a first coming from a woman I met."

"Steve."

Steve thought his heart just exploded when Helen called his name. Just his name, to be precise. He looked at her and smiled as he waited for her to continue her speech. However, she didn't. There was a look of uncertainty on Helen's face. Steve hated the fact that he's the reason why she's lost in a deep, miserable thoughts tonight. He knows what she's going to say to him and he's kind of hoping that she will change her mind. Oh, goodness. Sam would be so mad if he finds out that this little dinner date is a failure.

It was such a nerve wrecking situation for Steve as he waited for Helen to speak up but she didn't. Her vanilla ice cream is slowly melting in her hands and Steve immediately took it from Helen's hand before wiping it with his napkin.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

Helen said as she took the napkin from Steve's hand. Steve watched as Helen was busy wiping her hands with his napkin when out of nowhere, he leaned in to give a gentle kiss on her lips. Helen was clearly surprised and backed away a little but then relaxed when she felt his warm big hands caressing her right cheek. Helen closed her eyes and savors the taste of Steve's thick lips on hers. She was hoping that he would kiss her a little longer but he pulled away a few seconds later. Helen slowly opened her eyes and looked down at the floor in order to avoid Steve's gaze. Helen knows how childish it was but it has been a long time since she last kissed anyone. The last time would be during sophomore year which was around 14 years ago.

"Helen, I like you."

Helen looked up to see Steve's face when he confessed to her. She didn't reply him but continued to listen to him instead.

"I think I started to like you since the first time Tony introduced you to me at the party that night. I like how hardworking, courageous and brave you are without having to lose your feminine side. You're beautiful inside and out. Helen, you're too perfect for me and I'm afraid I can't give you a normal life."

"My life hasn't been normal since the day I involved myself with the Ultrons, you know."

"That's different. You're under his power."

"Steve, you know how it changed my life. And, I'm not a kid anymore. I know what I'm dealing with the first time Tony came to South Korea and invited me to work for him. I know my life will change forever. I was brave enough to embrace it. I just hope you'd be brave too."

Steve smiled when he heard what Helen was mumbling to him about. Helen's vanilla ice cream is slowly melting in his hand this time and he doesn't care about that anymore. He slowly leans in to kiss Helen's lips again and smirked when she replied his kiss this time. He can't deny the fact that he's feeling pretty nervous as this is his first kiss after what seems like forever. As they pulled away from the kiss and rested their foreheads against each other's, Steve smiles at Helen.

"So, you don't mind dating a 97 year old?"

"Matter of fact, you're 24 when you plunged into the Arctic, Steve. I'm 34 this year."

"10 years difference in age is nothing." He said as he closed the distance between them.

"Absolutely." Helen smiled and closed her eyes as Steve claimed her lips again.


End file.
